


Linked Together

by RileyRooin



Category: Rhett & Link
Genre: "I'm dead" move, College Rhett and Link, Handcuffed Together, M/M, One Shot, Pining, Tropetastic Tuesday, tropetastictuesday
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-10
Updated: 2017-03-10
Packaged: 2018-10-02 07:55:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,998
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10213034
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RileyRooin/pseuds/RileyRooin
Summary: When Rhett discovers a pair of handcuffs in Link's sock drawer, his curiosity is piqued.Written for Tropetastic Tuesday #1: Handcuffed together without the key





	

“Link?”

“Hmm?” Link’s voice was distracted. He didn’t pull his eyes away from the highlighted words in the notebook open on the desk in front of him.

“Why do you have a pair of handcuffs?”

Link let out a gasp as he whipped his head around so violently that Rhett was certain he’d pulled something. Rhett had his complete attention now. Link’s cheeks flushed as he replied, “Why are you snooping through my stuff?”

“I’m not snooping. I needed some socks and all mine are dirty. These were in your drawer. But, you’re avoiding the question.” He shook the handcuffs, the chain making a soft jangling noise as he did so. “Why do you have these?”

“They’re Jenny’s,” Link answered, not meeting Rhett’s eyes. “Put ’em back and let me study.” He attempted to turn back to his books, but Rhett wasn’t going to give up that easily, not when he had so many questions.

“Why do you have your ex-girlfriend’s handcuffs? Why does she even have handcuffs? Did you two use them? Why didn’t you tell me about any of this?”

“Rhett.” A muscle in Link’s cheek twitched as he tried to control his emotions. Jenny was not a topic they discussed under normal circumstances. And Rhett standing there holding a pair of handcuffs was anything but normal. “Quite frankly, it’s none of your business. That’s why I didn’t tell you. Now. Put. Them. Back.” He glared at Rhett from under his brow, clearly not in the mood to continue the conversation.

Rhett held up his hands, acquiescing to Link’s demands. “You’re right, man. Sorry.” He shoved the cuffs back into the drawer and stepped away.

The evening continued in a strained silence. Their dorm was quiet, even for a Friday night. Many of the other students had either gone home, or were out celebrating the weekend. Link was studying for an exam several days in the future, while Rhett pretended to do the same. His eyes kept drifting to the closed drawer as his mind was flooded with thoughts of the handcuffs. Had Link and Jenny used them? He didn’t think they’d even gotten far enough to do such a thing, but Link had remained tight-lipped about his brief relationship with her, so anything was possible. All Rhett knew was that their breakup had been swift and ugly.

Rhett allowed his eyes to drift shut as he indulged himself in some daydreaming. He imagined the way Link would look pinning hands above the head of a willing participant, snapping the cold metal shut around writhing wrists. He could almost feel the pressure of Link sitting on his chest as he leaned forward to finally bring their lips together. And then—

_Not again._

Rhett had been fighting off thoughts of kissing Link for as long as he could remember, but living together here at NC State had only increased their frequency. He opened his eyes, wondering if Link had noticed how labored his breathing had become, but his friend’s head remained bent over his books. Rhett clutched at the blanket on his bunk and willed himself to focus on the book in his lap.

Later that night, when Link disappeared to the bathroom with his toothbrush, Rhett took the opportunity to retrieve the cuffs again. He wanted to know what they felt like. His breath hitched at the clicking noises the cuffs made as he carefully fastened one of them around his right wrist. He wiggled his arm, taking in the weight of it hanging down.

After a few minutes of indulging his curiosity, he figured he shouldn’t press his luck any further. Link could be back at any minute. He grasped at the cuff, attempting to pop it open. Nothing happened. Desperately, he ran his fingers all over the smooth metal, finding no way to remove the ring from around his wrist. Weren’t these things supposed to have a release switch? When the door began to open, he shoved his hand behind his back and made a split-second decision to divert Link’s attention. The door was barely shut before he rushed at Link, taking him by surprise as they tumbled to the floor. Covering Link’s body with his own, he proclaimed, “I’m dead.”

Beneath him, Link let out a string of curses. “Get off me.”

“Can’t. I’m dead.”

“Rhett, c’mon.” Link struggled, but couldn’t move under Rhett’s weight. He went limp, seemingly resigned to dealing with it until Rhett was done. And then, just as suddenly, his body tensed again as his eyes fell upon Rhett’s wrist. “Why are you wearing the handcuffs?”

“Uh…” Rhett felt panic rising in his chest. Once again, panic led to impulsivity. He grabbed Link’s right wrist and wrapped the cuff around it.

“Rhett, no! Stop!” Link tried to squirm out of his grasp.

But, it was too late. Rhett closed the cuff, locking the two of them together.

“You idiot! What are you thinking?”

“I want to hear why you have these cuffs. You can tell me and then I’ll unlock them.”

“Oh, really? That’s gonna be pretty difficult without the key.”

_Well, shit._

*****

“Why would you lock our right wrists together?”

“I wasn’t thinking.”

“Clearly! Look at us!”

They were sitting together on Rhett’s bottom bunk. Rhett’s arm was stretched across his stomach, his hand resting on his left thigh. Though the position was awkward, it also meant their hips and thighs were pressed together. Link’s pinky had brushed against Rhett’s hand more than once since sitting on the bed. Not that he’d noticed, of course. He definitely wasn’t paying any attention to that.

“So, where’s the key?”

“Jenny’s got it.”

“Okay, so, call her.”

“I… I can’t, Rhett.”

“Fine, then I will.” He waited to see if Link would protest this. When he didn’t, Rhett continued, “But, first you gotta tell me what I’m getting into here. Is she gonna yell?”

“Maybe. Probably.”

“What happened between you two?”

Link sighed, eyes darting around until they finally settled on a spot just over Rhett’s shoulder. “I went to her dorm room one night and when I spotted the handcuffs I _may_ have overreacted just a little bit.”

“How badly?”

“I kinda accused her of cheating on me.”

“Oh, no.”

“Oh, yes. I fled the room and didn’t even realize I still had the cuffs in my hand until I got back here. I panicked and hid them in that drawer.” He smiled lopsidedly at Rhett. “It turns out that she wants to be a police officer. Hence, the cuffs. But, by the time we sorted that out, it was too late.”

Rhett felt a rush of something shockingly similar to relief at hearing that Link and Jenny hadn’t used the cuffs together. He pushed the feeling away, and said, “Okay, let’s call.”

They made their way over to the phone sitting on Rhett’s desk. He sat in his chair, pulling out the directory so he could find Jenny’s number. Link paced in front of him the best he could, but his path was severely limited by the handcuffs. With each pass, he tugged at Rhett’s wrist. Finally, Rhett couldn’t take anymore and pulled him into his lap, right arm wrapping around Link’s waist so the handcuffs and their hands sat on Link’s right thigh.

“I can’t concentrate,” Rhett hissed by way of explanation at Link’s incredulous look. “Now, let me call Jenny.”

It wasn’t Jenny who answered, but instead her roommate. She was friendly when she told him that Jenny was in the bathroom and would be back soon.

While Rhett waited for Jenny to pick up the phone, Link fidgeted in his lap, shifting his weight, obviously uncomfortable about their current situation. Rhett knew that if he didn’t stop squirming around, being cuffed together wouldn’t be the only uncomfortable thing they’d have to face that night. He tapped his fingers on Link’s thigh. “Stop moving!”

Before Link could respond, Jenny said, “Hello?”

“Jenny? Hi! It’s Rhett. Rhett McLaughlin. I’m Link’s roommate?”

“I know who you are. What do you want?” Her voice dripped with disdain.

Rhett chuckled, unnerved by the coldness of her voice. “Well, funny story. You know those handcuffs Link walked away with when y’all broke up?”

“If you mean the handcuffs he stole from me, then, yes.” Through the receiver, he heard a sharp intake of air. “Oh, please tell me that idiot locked himself to something stupid.”

He looked at their cuffed hands. “Yeah, something kind of like that.” He cleared his throat. “Listen, it’s late so I’ll get right to it. Do you still have the key?”

“No, I don’t. I got rid of it when he ran off with the cuffs.”

_Great._

“Well, do you know how to open them another way? Is there, like, a release mechanism or something?”

“Uh, no. They’re police issue handcuffs, not some dumb sex toy.”

Rhett’s cheeks warmed at these words, his earlier thoughts coming rushing back to him. “Whatever. Do you know how to pick the lock?”

“You boys are studying to be engineers. Figure it out. And while you’re at it, maybe ask him why we really broke up.” With that, she hung up and the line went dead.

What the hell did her last statement mean?

He turned to Link. “No luck. We’re on our own.”

With a sigh, Link said, “Fine. We can do this.”

After dragging over another chair so Link wasn’t in Rhett’s lap anymore, they set to work trying to pick the locks. They bent paperclips this way and that, working meticulously through trial and error to perfect their design. As they worked, they kept their heads close together. It took all of Rhett’s willpower not to fix his gaze on Link’s lips. How easy it would be to just lean over a few inches and let their lips brush.

“Link,” Rhett said, speaking before he could think about the words. “Jenny told me to ask why you two really broke up.”

Link’s shoulders visibly tensed. “What do you mean? I already told ya why we broke up.” He squinted at the cuff on Rhett’s wrist as he twisted the paperclip in the lock. “Dang it. Why won’t this work?”

“So, it was just the business with thinking she was cheating?”

Link stopped what he was doing and shot him a look. “I mean, that’s kinda enough to do it, don’t you think?”

“Yeah, right. Forget I said anything.”

They continued struggling with the locks, trying first one cuff, then the other. As the hours grew longer, their blinking became more frequent, and their conversation was punctuated by yawns. They were no closer to being freed from the handcuffs.

Link said, “I think we should try again tomorrow, man. It’s Saturday, and maybe fresh eyes will make this easier.”

“What about sleeping?”

Link ran his free hand over the back of his neck. He looked pointedly at Rhett’s bed. “We could share your bed?”

“Oh. Sure. That would be fine.” He tried to keep his voice casual.

Without further discussion, they made their way to the bed. It was hardly big enough to hold Rhett when he was alone. Adding in Link meant they had no choice but to cuddle close together with Rhett’s cuffed arm draped over Link’s waist. Before long, Link’s breathing slowed. Rhett was sure he was fast asleep. He considered that with just a little movement, he could accidentally brush his lips against the back of Link’s neck.

“Rhett,” Link whispered, startling him. “It was you.”

“What?”

“We broke up because of you.”

Rhett felt his pulse quicken. Was it possible Link mean what he thought he meant? “I don’t understand.”

“I think you do, bo.” He danced the fingers of his cuffed hand across Rhett’s.

“Link?” Rhett’s voice wavered as their fingers laced together.

“Go to sleep.”

“But—”

“Shh. Tomorrow.” Link lifted their joined hands and planted a light kiss on Rhett’s knuckles. “We’ll figure this out the same way we do everything: together.”

**Author's Note:**

> We can all thank TheGreyHenley for coming up with the great idea of Tropetastic Tuesday. Comments and kudos are always appreciated. Come visit me on [Tumblr](http://rileyrooin.tumblr.com) — I love to make new friends in the Rhink fandom.


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